Saturday, April 28, 2012

"Feelin' Groovy"


"Feelin' Groovy" Diane Evans ©2012 
The latest “To-Do” project has now become a “Ta-Da!”  Many, many moons ago, I used a design from one of my copyright-free sources, altered it somewhat, and printed it out on fabric.  Thanks to the experimentation of fellow blogger Jill Buckley at The Quilt Rat, I learned that aloe vera gel makes a wonderful medium for fixing fabric ink; it’s easily available and very inexpensive.  Since “available” and “inexpensive” are two of my favorite words, I bought the All-Purpose Giant Economy-Sized tube and went to work.
I ironed the fabric to a piece of freezer paper to give it stability.  The gel was spread over the entire drawing with a paintbrush and left to dry.  I then applied the color using Tsukineko Fabrico ink pens and used an iron to heat set it.  
Sulky rayon thread was used in the machine quilting, and French knots were added for texture.
The postcard was inserted into a raised, white mat and is available for sale in my Etsy shop.
Jill has also had great results using the aloe vera as a medium for blending watercolor pencils, and the next project is already percolating away.  I think this gel could be the next baking soda of our time – one simple product, so many uses.
Thanks, Jill! 
Diane

9 comments:

Quilt Rat said...

First of all, I think you give me far too much credit

.As for this piece....absolutely DIVINE!!!! This one is not only gorgeous but it has such a whimsical feel.....Monty Python meets Doctor Suess. :-)

imquilternity said...

I saw the Aloe Vera info on Jill's blog. Isn't it wonderful that she tests all of these products first and then we get to use them (and know how they will work). As usual, your work is truly beautiful. And, thank you so much for a lovely postcard that came in my mail today. I can't believe those tiny, tiny, PERFECT stitches! I knew you were good, but now I have proof! :)

Rona said...

I love your designs.

I use Aloe Vera to thin my fabric paint (Setacolor) and I've only just bought a tin of Derwent Inktense blocks. I've done some experimenting with Aloe Vera with them too and it's great. No bleeding like you can sometimes get with water. I can only find small bottles of clear gel here in New Zealand but we can get large bottles of pale green gel. It's so pale that it doesn't affect the colour so that's what I use. I like the word 'cheap' too!

Diane Wright said...

I have used aloe vera before...then forgot about it totally...now, thank you very much, I remember how good it was. Your designs, however, far out pace anything I ever did. Great job, Diane... per usual :^)

Calicojoan said...

Wow, what else can I say. It's gorgeous, and who would have thought of the gel. I am going to head over to Jills blog, and read up on this. Something I might just have to try out! What fun. :-)

Robbie said...

as always...beautiful work and workmanship!

Anonymous said...

How beautiful. Thanks for passing on the hint about aloe vera gel. I recently read about this and it's nice to see your beautiful results. Do you just buy the gel meant to treat burns?

The piece looks perfect in the frame.

abigail said...
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